In Africa recursive loops are sometimes
represented as a snake that bites its own tail. Just as contemporary
computer science uses recursion to model the fractal structures in nature,
indigenous African knowledge recognizes--and makes use of--the "self
generating" properties of certain natural and social systems.

Another snake symbol in
Africa represents well-being that lasts forever. They say that the snake
is infinitely long, but it can fit in a finite space, because it has "coiled
back on itself." As we will see, fitting infinite length into a finite
space is also a good description of a fractal.